Freshman Year Taught Me…
Freshman year of college has come to a close, and I have learned so much! As I was writing this list, it seems like a lot of these things are negative, but they’re really not! They’re super important life lessons, and as we all know, life lessons are all rainbows and butterflies. Freshman year was difficult for me because I’m not one to engage in the typical college culture (aka Greek life and drinking). I mean I’m typically in bed and asleep by 10:30…even on weekends. So, here’s what freshman year taught me!
Freshman Year Taught Me…
college stereotypes are real
College is probably the only part of life that is accurately portrayed in movies. There are wild parties all the time, people are drunk on most weekends, and people skip class on a regular basis. Of course, all college students aren’t like that, and I’m living proof! It’s been harder for me to feel like I have a solid friend group because I don’t go out and I don’t drink. You wouldn’t believe how hard it is to find someone who isn’t talking about how wasted they got last weekend or their crazy party plans for the night all the time. Honestly, by the second month of college, I was craving an actual intellectual conversation.
if you want something done to your standards, doing it yourself is the best bet
I learned this the hard way. My dorm is a suite style meaning that my roommate and I share a bathroom with another room. In the beginning, we all agreed to clean the bathroom once a week and take turns cleaning…. well that schedule actually never ended up working, so guess who ended up cleaning the bathroom all year? That’s right. Me. Yes it got very frustrating at times because I felt like I was the only one owning up to the responsibility of cleaning, but in reality, I was glad to not be bathing in other people’s slime and having a clean toilet. I would hate to think what that bathroom would’ve looked like if I hadn’t been cleaning it all year…
People will flake on you
This goes along with the previous point. People sometimes won’t hold up their end of an agreement. Yes it’s frustrating, but it happens. I don’t think I have high standards, but apparently I do. But you know, at least that means I’m surrounding myself with driven people who want to make a difference in the world.
college is what you put in
College is what you make of it. It truly is. If you want to stay in your room and focus all of your time on doing well in classes, you can by all means do that. If you want to go out every night and not care about your academics, you can do that as well. As long as you’re happy, then you’re doing college right for you. I mean, you shouldn’t be going out every night and failing all of your classes because the chances of you getting a job when/if you graduate are going to be slim. I want you to be successful, so do well in those classes!
be your own best friend
This is the most important one. You’re the only one that knows your needs and what you need to focus on. I need me time on a daily basis, so I sacrifice part of my social life to fulfill that. Becoming comfortable with myself and understanding what I need in my life to be successful is the most valuable thing I’ve learned this entire year.
Are you in college? If so, what is something that college has taught you? I love to hear what you have to say!
~abigail gray
